Saudi Arabia

Manal Al-Sharif was arrested after she drove her car on the roads of Al-Khobar on Saturday. Driving a vehicle is an act which is strictly forbidden to women in Saudi Arabia.

The police said they had evidence that Manal was instigated into performing this act by several other women, many of them from foreign countries. However, her lawyer has point blank denied any such conspiracy. Manal is reported to have said: “I did not cry and will not break down as long as King Abdullah is there”.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah, appointed General Hussain bin Abdullah Al-Qabil as the new Chief of General Staff. This decision was taken on Friday and comes amidst a major reshuffle. According to several decrees by King Abdullah, the fates of many proved fortunate while there were those who were relieved of office.

Lt. General Abdul Rahman Al-Murshid was given the post of Deputy Chief of General Staff and Major General Khaled bin Bandar was appointed the new Commander of the Land Forces. The king also extended the tenures of two lucky individuals: Muhammed Ibrahim Al-Suwaiyel and Abdul Aziz Al-Hugail for the presidency of the King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology and the presidency of Saudi Railway Organization respectively.

The Finance Minister, Ibrahim Al-Assaf spoke of how the Kingdom was to overspend 15% in its annual budget due to construction projects and job-related schemes. He was talking to reporters towards the end of the Euromoney Saudi Arabia Conference which took place in Riyadh.

This was thanks to decrees by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah. The economic growth rate is at 4% this year. This an improvement over the previous year’s rate which was 3.8%. Most of the recent spending will go towards the building of new houses, vocational creation and unemployment benefits.

The Saudi world-view looks rosy with estimated growth rates said to reach 7% in the times which are yet to come.

A 42 member gang of auto thieves were taken into custody after authorities made several raids in different cities of Saudi Arabia. The majority of those caught were Saudis. The origins of the organized crime syndicate were probed into following many complaints regarding stolen vehicles, especially SUVs and latest model cars.

The Riyadh Governor, Prince Salman ordered the investigation which was successful in meeting its target of busting the gang. Except for an Egyptian and a Syrian all the gang members were Saudis. Gang members were experts in nabbing cars from workshops and painting/washing centers. They faked the registration documents and often reassembled the cars thereby evading security measures taken by the police.

Besides the vehicles recovered many had been already sold by the gang and a large number had undergone alterations. Those left intact were returned to their rightful owners by the authorities, who are currently making further inquiries into this recent breach of law.

This Sunday, the opening of the Princess Nora bint Abdulrahman University (PNU) by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah took place. Situated at a distance of 25 km from Riyadh, the largest women-only university in the world cost a cool 20 billion Saudi Riyals as regards its infrastructure and resources.

King Abdullah, along with Riyadh Governor Prince Salman and the Finance Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf, toured the university campus, which is spread out over 800 hectares, on a train. This is a brand new experience for Saudi women who have not yet been given the right to vote in elections or drive on the roads.

The university comprises: a medical lab, research center, vast library, conference hall, 700-bed hospital, extensive hostel facilities, a sports city and waste management plant. A large percentage of the energy requirements of the campus will be provided by solar cell technology.

The British Ambassador, Sir Tom Phillips, was also present on the occasion. He lauded the wisdom and leadership of King Abdullah who had taken an important step towards extending educational opportunities to the female half of Saudi society.

RIYADH: On Tuesday Saudi Arabia has announced its plan to hold municipal elections next month after a two-year delay. Electoral commission chairman Abdul Rahman Al-Dahmash told that “First phase of voting will be conducted on April 23, 2011”.

Al-Dahmash said Municipal and Rural Affairs Minister Prince Mansour bin Miteb set up the electoral commission to supervise elections in all parts of the Kingdom. It would implement all the election strategies and remove obstacles he added.

He said “The commission has been given the mandate to take necessary measures to make the election a success,” Prince Mansour has also approved the formation of an executive committee under the chairmanship of Jedaie Al-Qahtani.

First elections ever held under the Saudi Arabia was the municipal elections in 2005. Half the seats are elected while the rest are appointed

The government said in 2009 it was delaying the election for two years to explore the possibility of allowing women to vote.